Friday March 8
Friday was another clinical day for us here in Kotzebue, Alaska. For some, the day started at seven in the morning and the rest of us followed at eight. We each have now officially been to three separate departments of the hospital and are finding our passions (I found I enjoy Infection Prevention, who would have thought?). Several students had the opportunity to experience the miracle of life and came back to our housing with grins on their faces. The rest of the evening was spent relaxing and preparing for the next day.
Quotes of the day:
Lindsay: “Baby’s cookin’!”
Brenna: “Baby’s poppin’!”
Anthony: “Whatever you are, be a good one”
Friday was another clinical day for us here in Kotzebue, Alaska. For some, the day started at seven in the morning and the rest of us followed at eight. We each have now officially been to three separate departments of the hospital and are finding our passions (I found I enjoy Infection Prevention, who would have thought?). Several students had the opportunity to experience the miracle of life and came back to our housing with grins on their faces. The rest of the evening was spent relaxing and preparing for the next day.
Quotes of the day:
Lindsay: “Baby’s cookin’!”
Brenna: “Baby’s poppin’!”
Anthony: “Whatever you are, be a good one”
Saturday March 9
Saturday was our excursion day. We started the day off with a hearty meal of eggs, toast, cereal, bananas, granola bars, etc. We then set out on a journey towards the water to watch the beginning of a dogsled race. It is amazing how fast a set of dogs can pull a person and sled full of supplies for hundreds of miles. After finishing up at the race we stopped by the grocery store and each experienced shock at the prices. In Minnesota/Wisconsin it is easy to take for granted accessibility to food and other resources. In Kotzebue everything must be flown in, shipped in, or locally developed. Resources can be sparse at times; many things are recycled and used in a variety of ways to prolong its life. We were also given an amazing tour of the community college and library. We learned they had just added an aviation program and have a simulation space to replicate the experience of piloting a plane. Our tour guide also put our nursing skills to the test by an impromptu triage simulation. Needless to say, we spent most of the time laughing together. Later in the afternoon we visited the Northwest Arctic Heritage Center National Park Service. Here we learned more about the different animals and the surrounding National Parks.
During this time our group split in half. Four individuals continued to explore the Northwest Arctic Heritage Center and learned more about tribal beliefs and the surrounding villages. The other half moseyed down the street to the airport. Here we climbed into a bush plane and the pilot took off. The plane was in the air for an hour and during this time we saw muskox, caribou, and amazing views. It was an exhilarating experience! Those who did not have the opportunity to fly today will be able to go tomorrow, weather permitting.
The rest of the evening was spent preparing for an upcoming video that will help spread the five key concepts of communication: Acknowledge, Introduce, Duration, Explanation, and Thank You [AIDET]. We will be collaborating with the hospital during this process and excitement is present from all parties involved.
Quotes of the day:
Hannah I.: “Will you look at those Muskox and Caribou!”
Kjersten: *sings “Just AIDET” to Michael Jackson’s Beat It*
-Hannah P.
Here are some pictures of our day, enjoy!